The 5 best TV shows to binge-watch over New Year’s weekend

With 2019 quickly approaching, and New Year’s Day falling on a Tuesday, some (lucky) people are likely in the midst of a four-day weekend (or two-week holiday vacation, if you’re really lucky). Before you stay up late and toast to 2019, you could use that downtime to enjoy some of the best shows of 2018 and prep for what ups and downs TV will bring next year.

If you’re ready to get addicted to a new show: ‘Killing Eve’

If you missed this thrilling cat-and-mouse espionage drama’s debut on BBC America earlier this year, you’ll hopefully be excited to hear that the first season is streaming on Hulu, ready to be binged. Sandra Oh, who long labored on “Grey’s Anatomy” and in movies like “Sideways” as the “best friend” character, gets to sink her teeth into a leading role as a British spy trying to track down a notorious assassin (Jodie Comer). Good acting, good writing and good TV all around.

Stream it on Hulu.

If you are optimistic about bad TV getting good again: ‘True Detective’

Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in the HBO series "True Detective."(Photo: klawler342)

When “True Detective” first debuted in 2014, it was critically lauded and beloved, a striking police procedural with fantastic performances from Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson and gorgeously disturbing visuals. Its follow-up second season starring Rachel McAdams, Taylor Kitsch and Vince Vaughn was a massive disappointment. But HBO is rolling the dice again with a new season starring Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali this month, and so it’s a good time to revisit the magic of that first season. Brave the second at your own peril.

Stream on HBO Go/Now.

If you want inspiration to cook more in the new year: ‘Salt Fat Acid Heat’

Samin Nosrat’s seminal cookbook “Salt Fat Acid Heat” flew off the bookshelves this holiday season, but you can experience her wisdom and infectious foodie spirit in the Netflix documentary series based on the book. Nosrat travels to Italy, Japan, Mexico and her own home in the U.S. to discover the origins of those four titular cooking elements, and it’s hard not to be mesmerized by her in the process.

Syfy’s irreverent and underrated fantasy series returns for its fourth season Jan. 23 so you have just enough time to catch up on the first three before it arrives. The series, often described as “Narnia” meets “Harry Potter” with some adult content thrown in, starts out familiar but quickly shapes itself into one of the most affecting and unique genre shows on TV. Its third season, in which its main characters are consumed with quests to help bring back magic, contains one of the best TV episodes of 2018.

Stream it on Netflix.

If you miss ‘Game of Thrones’ and want something you can finish fast: ‘The White Queen’

Over the holidays, you likely have a lot more time to watch TV than you do during the regular year, so signing up for multiple seasons of a new show can be an unwise choice. If you want a show that delivers a lot of story in just a few episodes, try Starz’ “The White Queen,” a fictionalized telling of England’s medieval Wars of the Roses, which stars Rebecca Ferguson (“Mission Impossible”). Think “Game of Thrones” without the dragons (the Wars were between competing English houses over the English throne and were George R.R. Martin’s inspiration for the “Thrones” books), but it clocks in at just 10 episodes. If you want just a little bit more medieval warring and scheming, the follow up series “The White Princess” stars “Killing Eve” assassin Comer and is only eight episodes.